The present invention relates to telecommunication networks. In particular, the invention relates to an infrastructure element that intermediates between users and service providers.
Most of the traditional wireless networks, which support the provision of various services (also called applications) to users, include three basic entities: a service provider, a network operator, and one or more users. The service provider provides several services to the user using the network operator's infrastructure. The service provider can be a content provider, an application provider, or a partner portal (who has a business relationship with the network operator). The network operator provides and maintains the basic network infrastructure over which the service provider provides various data and voice services. The user avails the services, which may either be free services, or paid/subscribed services, provided by the service provider.
Provision of services is an important means of revenue generation for operators as well as for service providers. Indeed, for increasing this revenue generation, services that manifest both value and convenience to consumers need to be provided using the network operator's infrastructure. Examples of some of the conventional services being provided include caller-line identification, call waiting, and call forwarding.
There have been several advancements in content creation of content-rich services and applications, as well in technologies of devices on which they can be used. For instance, in the wireless domain, there have been advancements in technology of mobile handsets. These devices are now enabled for handling “content-rich” services such as multi-media messaging (MMS). These advancements enable provision of “content-rich” services such as video streaming, downloadable music and online gaming. Provision of all these “content-rich” services lead to increased revenue generation, which is very much desirable for operators and for service providers.
Besides provision of “content-rich” services, there is also a huge opportunity of direct revenue generation for the operator while providing content and services. The operator has the billing relation with subscriber, subscriber profiles, subscriber context and knowledge of device capabilities. The operator can use this information in several advantageous ways. First, the operator can share this information with the service providers to offer better services. Second, this information can also be used for managing payment and transactions for billing purposes.
However, there are problems with the implementation of such services. To provide such services, the operator should be able to implement policies (primarily for enforcing service control) not only at the network level, but also at the application level. The service control needs to be enforced at various levels. Firstly, the operator needs to be able to exercise service awareness encompassing individual application and users. This means that the operator must be aware what services or applications a particular user is availing. Second, the operator needs to be able to deploy services without requiring significant changes in the network infrastructure. Third, the services need to be interoperable with leading service providers. Application interfaces need to be open so as to enable integration with third party applications for billing, provisioning of services, etc. In addition, the operator needs to be able to provide conditional access to users for example, for payment sites.
There are granted patents and products in the market which address a few of the issues discussed above. U.S. Pat. No. 6,466,984 titled “Method And Apparatus For Policy Based Management Of Quality Of Service Treatments Of Network Data Traffic Flows By Integrating Policies With Application Program” discloses a method and apparatus for integrating policies with application program to provide policy-based management of quality of service (QoS) treatments of network data traffic flows. The QoS policies are defined in context of the application programs. The network traffic is mapped to the corresponding policy. The relevant policy is then enforced on the network traffic at the network device. The policies are stored in a directory schema. This patent only relates to implementation of QoS based on application programs.
The “Application Switch” from Sylantro Systems, CA, USA is designed to support the infrastructure requirements of service providers by providing new service capabilities. The software architecture incorporates the data structures that support multi-tenant deployments. This platform acts as both the delivery mechanism and the development engine for a wide range of existing and new applications. The combination of the applications-enabled architecture and the complete suite of application modules allow a plurality of service providers to deliver a variety of telephony services over broadband networks.
The iVANi iServer Application Switch from NexTone Communications, MD, USA provides policy-based call routing and signaling mediation to deploy applications in an on-net IP environment. It also interoperates with softswitch and media gateway platforms for off-net calls to and from the public network. It also provides support for enhanced services and applications such as presence management, voice-data VPNs, unified messaging and multimedia conferencing. New services and applications can be added with the addition of a new application server to the network.
Alteon Application Switch 2224 from Nortel Networks, Canada is a multi-application switching system that performs Layer 2/3 switching and high-performance Layer 4–7 intelligent traffic management for applications such as server and network device load balancing, application redirection, security, and bandwidth management. The Alteon Application Switch 2224 can be used in server farms, data centers, and networks, handling up to two million concurrent sessions.
The prior art discussed above tries to implement policies at the application level. However, they are limited in their approach. The patent discusses policy implementation for QoS issues and not for other services that may be provided by an operator. The products also restrict themselves to being either a Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) switch or a telephony service switch.
Thus, there is a need for an invention that enables a service provider to deploy premium data services. Further, it should enable the service provider to implement policies at the application level for intermediation between the user and content provider, enterprise or a third-party application provider. Capability of billing and licensing for these enhanced services should also be provided to the operator.